


Future Fears

by CoinOfDestiny



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, One Shot, Panic Attacks, Post-Canon, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-31
Updated: 2020-07-31
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:48:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25632334
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CoinOfDestiny/pseuds/CoinOfDestiny
Summary: Whilst visiting the Southern Water Tribe, Korra does her best to alleviate Asami's fear of loss.
Relationships: Korra/Asami Sato
Comments: 8
Kudos: 130





	Future Fears

The blizzard was raging outside, just as it had been for the past few hours. The freezing temperatures and heavy snow obscuring any vision of the outside world would have normally irritated Asami, but not in this moment. In this moment she felt only comfort and warmth, a contrast brought about by both the presence of her companion, and the warmth of her embrace. Although they had spent almost all of their day in the Southern Water Tribe beside one another, Asami was yet to tire of being with Korra, and doubted she ever would. Together they lay in bed, Korra kept her arm around Asami holding her close to keep her warm whilst she subconsciously played with her long raven locks. She delighted in the simple affection her partner was showing her, Asami knew that so long as Korra was by her side she could be at peace.

Until now, moments such as these had been a rarity in Korra’s life, for as the Avatar her days growing up were hectic with little time devoted to much else besides training to fulfil her duties. Back then that was all she knew, she enjoyed the action and couldn’t see herself doing much else, anything less than exhilarating was boring, and she wasn’t interested in devoting time to boredom. Her love of action hadn’t changed a bit since then, but since Asami had entered her life and become much more than just a friend she had found a new side to herself, now finding enjoyment in the peace of leisurely strolls, long and slow conversations as well as some occasional laziness. In the not too distant past, she certainly would’ve found this to be nothing but a boring waste of time, but now sharing these moments with her partner was something she cherished. With Asami she was comfortable to just lie down and comfortably share silence without the need for anything else.

They had been together in bed for some time, each of them hardly moving, perfectly content with their present situation. As Korra continued comforting Asami, she noticed she was struggling to keep her eyes open.

"Alright beautiful I’m getting sleepy; you want me to get you anything before I collapse?" Korra asked softly, slowly shifting her head to face her partner. "Asami?" Brushing several strands of hair away from Asami’s face, Korra smiled gently as she realised that her partner had already drifted off to sleep. "Heh, goodnight princess."

* * *

Asami awoke to the sound of the winds still howling through the night. She was shivering as an icy breeze swept through their room, caused by a window which had been forced open by the ferocity of the storm. Korra was still next to her, now fast asleep, unbothered by the cold, unlike Asami, who willed herself to get out of bed and slowly move over to shut the window in order to return to the comfort she was previously enjoying.

As she returned to bed, Asami gazed upon her partner for a moment, softly smiling over her. Captivated by her presence, she found herself daydreaming over the life they now shared together, the wonders it had brought and the many wonders it had yet to bring. _Oh Korra, I don’t know what I would do without you._ She thought to herself, smiling calmly. In that moment of peaceful bliss, a darker and more serious thought occurred to her. _What **would** I do without you?_. The soft smile which had accompanied her previous cheerful thoughts had now faded, replaced by a grimace of pain as the young engineer’s mind suddenly became flooded with a surge of panic. She tried to contain this thought and let it go but it persisted further, leading into visions of a hollow, lonely future, so cold that the blizzard outside would seem a paradise by comparison.

Despite the piercing cold, sweat was beginning to trickle down her face. Asami noticed her heart beginning to pound rapidly, she was beginning to find it difficult to breathe and started to pant, desperate for air. For better or for worse, she had grown accustomed to flashes of distress throughout her life, in particular shortly after her mother’s death, but what she felt at this moment held an intensity as yet unknown to her. She felt as though her entire world was on the verge of collapsing and she was helpless to do anything to stop it. Most of the time she was extremely rational and considered everything carefully, but right now she found herself unable to do so, stuck in a loop of belief that nothing was going to be okay and that she would be forever denied any lasting happiness. Tears were beginning to spill out, she shut her eyes hoping for her panic to pass but it continued to prove unrelenting. She was now sat upright in bed with her knees to her chest, arms clutched tightly around her legs as if needing to grip onto reality, her thoughts continued running through at breakneck speed. _Not her, I can’t lose her too, after everything that’s happened we should be allowed to be happy!_ It was as though her own thoughts had become an inescapable waking nightmare, but as she continued to fall deeper into the depths of her own worst fears, a familiar voice called out to her, as though extending a hand to guide her out of the dark.

“Asami? Asami it’s okay, you’re home, I’m here.”

The voice flowed into her mind with ease, breaking past the terror and helping to wash away her despair, it’s softness and sincerity soothed her fractured mind, empowering her with the strength to open her eyes.

Slowly forcing her eyes to open, Asami brushed aside the sweat soaked strands of hair stuck to her face. Still panting, she looked over to face Korra, who was now also sat upright, leaning in close to her, caringly resting her hand on her shoulder. Asami’s eyes met those of her beloved, she could see they were full of worry for her, whilst her own reddened eyes revealed unconcealable fear as tears continued to flow uncontrollably.

“Korra?” Asami whispered slowly, still a little disoriented from her panic.

“I’m here.” she responded softly, accompanying her reply with a gentle smile.

Immediately upon hearing those words Asami hastily leapt towards her partner without warning, embracing her tightly. Korra returned the gesture, doing everything she could to comfort her. They held one another for a long time, each of them motionless, not wishing to let go of the other.

Once Asami had managed to regain some of her composure she felt comfortable releasing herself from their embrace. Korra sat close to her partner, waiting patiently until she was ready to talk, not wanting to push her into saying anything. Slowly wiping the tears from her eyes, Asami managed to find the strength to talk.

“I don’t want to lose you. What we have together, I love it, I love you.” Her eyes darted over to Korra’s quickly before looking away just as hastily. “But being in peril isn’t exactly unusual for us, and I’m scared that one day one of us won’t make it out alive.” She was starting to tremble slightly as her words grew deathly quiet. “I lost both my parents, you’re the only family I have left. I couldn’t do anything when they died, I felt helpless and it still hurts, but I think it would destroy me if I ever had to feel helpless watching…watching you…”

“I know. You don’t have to finish.” Korra placed her hand on top of Asami’s tenderly.

“When we’re together I feel like my heart is full. I just don’t want to lose that; I don’t want to lose _this._ ” As she finished her sentence she took Korra’s hand into her own, gripping tightly. Asami was visibly dejected, she looked down, taking a moment to steady her breathing. “Korra, I love you; I love being with you, it’s just…I just…I’m scared.” Tears were beginning to form in Asami’s eyes as her voice was quavering. “Losing someone hurts. When I lost my mom, my dad was still around. Then when I lost him, you were there.” For a brief second she smiled, thinking of the happiness Korra had brought into her life, but her smile faded just as quickly as it had appeared, her mind returning to terror. “Being alone, completely alone, that’s what terrifies me.” Asami slowly shifted herself further towards her partner, brushing her other hand along Korra’s cheek. “You’ve felt it too. The fear, the suffering. I know you don’t want to think about it, but please just tell me honestly, does it get easier?”

Korra looked down solemnly for a moment, considering everything she’d been through before answering.

“Do you remember the letters you sent to me? After I was poisoned.”

“Of course I do.”

“Back then I…I didn’t know if there was much of a future for me. I’d almost given up on myself, but I didn’t. You cared about me; you were there for me.” She smiled slightly, in reminiscence of her partner’s affection. “I’m not sure I realised it at the time, but that was a big part of why I didn’t give up. You had my back and because of that I’m here now.” As she continued to speak, Asami’s eyes slowly lifted to meet Korra’s. “I hope you feel safe with me, because I feel safe with you. Us being together is all I need to know that I don’t have to worry, because I know we’ll be okay. I know you’re scared, but I promise, it gets easier, especially with a helping hand. You were there for me when I needed help, just know that I’m always going to be here for you.”

Smiling warmly at her partner, Korra searched her eyes looking for assurance that she was okay. After a few moments Asami returned her partner’s smile and proceeded to let go of her hand, instead moving in to rest her head onto the shorter woman’s shoulder, shutting her eyes.

“Korra, I…Thank you.” Her words were hushed and slow, but despite her briefness, those simple words were able to convey everything she needed to say.

Although her fears were not completely alleviated, Asami found herself optimistic for the future, finding comfort in Korra’s company, as well as her promise to help in carrying the pain. Korra meanwhile was more than happy to provide support, she was glad they could be there for each other, holding on to one another so they may both stay afloat.

* * *

They had stayed in bed together for some time, both of them were comfortable, but after everything that had been said, neither were ready to go back to sleep. Korra wanted to help restore her girlfriend’s natural high spirits, as they were snuggled up together she noticed the storm outside beginning to fade, which gave her an idea for how she could cheer up Asami.

“Hey look, the blizzard’s finally dying down.” Korra said excitedly.

“Oh no, I know that voice, what are you thinking?”

“Ok, picture this: Snow falling slowly, stars visible across the night sky, full moon illuminating the darkness. There’s this cute girl walking along the shore, she’s the Avatar and quite possibly the coolest person you’ve ever seen.”

“I’m not sure.” Asami cut in shrugging. “This story doesn’t seem very believable.”

Korra continued with her story, undeterred by her partner’s remark. “She’s holding hands with her girlfriend and she’s beautiful, absolutely breathtaking, you’d think she was straight out of a dream.”

“Not to mention extremely intelligent and brilliant.” Asami interjected, raising an eyebrow playfully.

“Of course. After all, the Avatar wouldn’t be around if it wasn’t for her genius. Anyway, her long dark hair is flowing gently in the wind, the Avatar turns to face her, taking her other hand into her own, they smile at one another lovingly and under the light of the moon share a life changing, passionate kiss, falling even more deeply in love.”

Korra was beaming at her, eyes filled with affection.

“Well, that was…detailed.” Asami spoke carefully, eyes narrowing as she tried to work out if Korra was serious.

“So, interested?” 

“I’ll admit it sounds nice; this Avatar character sounds adorable and I bet she’s really sweet and kind with her girlfriend; unfortunately, it’s still freezing.” Asami made a point of illustrating her aversion to the cold by taking their duvet and pulling it up to her neck.

“Come on, I promise it’ll be fun, not to mention I heard the stars are almost as beautiful as you are.” Korra grinned endearingly.

Asami giggled softly, cuddling up even closer to Korra. “I love those awkward compliments of yours. Fine I’ll go. But only if you hold me close to you and keep me warm the whole time we’re out, and this kiss had better be as life changing as described.”

Just as Asami finished her sentence, Korra gently took her face in her hands, hesitating for a moment, biting her lip and meeting her partner’s wide-eyed gaze. She spent this moment taking in the details of her face, observing her beauty and surprise before swiftly leaning in to kiss the taller woman. Asami was momentarily staggered by her partner’s sudden gesture, caught off guard by its intensity, but Korra’s warmth was irresistible and she quickly found herself melting into the kiss, falling into the moment. She wrapped her arms around Korra’s neck leaning further in, feeling as though they could stay in this moment of passion until the stars burned out. Ultimately they both pulled away, though more from breathlessness than lack of desire for one another. As they did so they each leaned forward, gently pressing their foreheads against one another, eyes shut, neither of them wishing to let go just yet.

“So…did that live up to expectations?” Korra whispered, opening her eyes to meet her girlfriend’s beautiful glowing green gaze.

“Expectations surpassed.” Asami purred, not breaking eye contact with Korra.

Shifting herself back, Asami grinned cheerfully. “So, are we going on our magical date under the stars? It’ll be dawn soon.”

“You’re really interested?” Korra’s eyes widened, ecstatic to see her girlfriend’s spirit revitalized.

“What can I say, you’re very convincing.” Asami bit her lip, thinking of the kiss they had just shared.

Smiling at one another they quickly got up to get dressed. As they were getting ready to leave, Korra’s mind darted back to something Asami had said earlier, it had caught her off guard and she didn’t feel comfortable bringing it up until now.

“Asami?”

“Mhm?”

“You think of me as your family?” Korra asked nervously, rubbing the back of her neck.

“Of course I do. You’re special to me. There’s no one I’d rather be with than you.” Asami reassured, smiling affectionately.

As they walked outside Korra wrapped her arm around her girlfriend’s waist, pulling her close. She was giddy with excitement, delighted by the thought of them being a family, unsuccessfully trying to hide her euphoria.

“I can feel you smiling you know.” Asami giggled warmly.

“I know.” Korra shut her eyes, dreaming of their future together.


End file.
